Flying high - 9 facts for frequent flyers

In Depth › Science Features Why does airline food taste so terrible? Are planes becoming fuel efficient? Take your mind sky high and give yourself something to think about next time you take off ... 1. At cruising altitude you are 10% of the way to being in space. (Source: Ian Allen) When you're cruising in a long haul flight at an altitude around 10,000 metres you have only 90km to go before you could officially be called an astronaut.